Fla undercover cop shoots kid at family business

This is a discussion on Fla undercover cop shoots kid at family business within the Law Enforcement, Military & Homeland Security Discussion forums, part of the Related Topics category; A 24 yr old sees a suspicious person parked at his family's business, he pulls up to the car and asks 'What are you doing ...

Fla undercover cop shoots kid at family business

A 24 yr old sees a suspicious person parked at his family's business, he pulls up to the car and asks 'What are you doing here?'. The guy won't answer so the young man goes to get his cell phone and call 911. The undercover cop 'commands' him to stop, and shots him four times.

The cop says - the kid approached, the cop showed his badge, the kid tried to beat him up, and the kid ran to his truck for a gun.

With only one side of the story - which may or may not be accurate - who can say what happened? Sounds like they could use the popular line in FL LE these days that if the shooter had not gotten out of his car, the event would not have happened...

When your order to stop what you’re doing..... Do it. The Adams kid was drinking and obviously didn't do what he was told

having only read a headline that stated the cop was not uniformed brings a whole set of issues into play.
I've told cops who were uniformed but out of their jurisdiction (and over stepping their bounds) to pound sand, an undercover cop has to do his job differently than a uniformed cop.

The cop says - "I was on the property, the kid pulled up, and I got out of my car. I was in a SWAT shirt, and I told him I was a cop, and here is my badge". Next thing he knows is the kid is beating him up.

Sounds believeable to me. I often attack SWAT cops with guns, especially if I am unarmed.

Sounds strange, but strange things happen. There are only two witnesses and one is dead. The other has a clear record without blemishes of other shootings or record of uncontrolled violence. I can't find fault with the LEO, not without knowing more and I am afraid that just won't happen.

A woman must not depend on protection by men. A woman must learn to protect herself.
Susan B. Anthony
A armed society is a polite society. Manners are good when one has to back it up with his life.
Robert Heinlein

The cop says - "I was on the property, the kid pulled up, and I got out of my car. I was in a SWAT shirt, and I told him I was a cop, and here is my badge". Next thing he knows is the kid is beating him up.

Sounds believeable to me. I often attack SWAT cops with guns, especially if I am unarmed.

In my small town, I know punks who have done that. Or at least tried that. So it's not out of the realm of possibility.

Especially if you consider if Adams had been out drinking. (Which we know he had been at a bar with his friends). We also know from the background, he already has a prior criminal record for narcotics. While the cop probably didn't know any of that, at that time... Adams certainly did, and probably figured it wasn't going to end well once the cop smelled alcohol on his breath while he was driving.

So, he's drunk, pulls up to a man sitting in a car to ask why you're sitting out in front of my family's business? He finds out it's a cop doing surveillance. Knowing he's been drinking he may have figured out now he's facing a possible DWI? I can see him doing something stupid like jumping the cop, get him off balance and then try to get away. Drunk people do stupid things all the time.

You can't look at this from the perspective of being a law abiding, upstanding citizen such as yourself and what a sober person would do. You have to look at it from Mr. Adam's possible perspective, being drunk and what a drunk would do.

I find it interesting that Adams was returning home from a bar after a night out with his friends.

On it's surface, I'm going to say that alcohol likely played a role in young Adams' behavior. At least until proven otherwise.

At this point, there's no reason to dispute the deputies version of the story, given his stellar record and no incidents in his background.

Originally Posted by barstoolguru

When your order to stop what you’re doing..... Do it. The Adams kid was drinking and obviously didn't do what he was told

^^^^^^^^^^YEP^^^^^^^^^^^

I'm in this camp on this one,

Adams(the deceased) was possibly buzzing, on his way home from the bar.
He should have done just that, gone home.

Judging from the officers record,

From article;He has received numerous awards and letters of commendation, including for providing security for House Speaker John Boehner this year and helping to find thieves who stole $1.6 million worth of jewelry in 2011.

One letter of praise came from a man who was involved in a car wreck in suburban Boca Raton. Custer arrived at the scene, the letter said, and "did nothing less than an outstanding job" looking after him, his wife, their children and the other people involved.

I would rather die with good men than hide with cowardsIf you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans.
Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it whether it exists or not, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedy."

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
You ever read an NCOER or OER for someone in the army? Those statements sound like he was doing his job, nothing more, nothing less. I am not taking a side on this one. But reading statements like that don't really mean much.

There is a rational explanation here that doesn't require one to think the dead kid was drunk or crazy.
There have been so many phonies doing home invasions he may have felt the "cop" was casing his business, had no
right to be on his property etc. Of course smart would have involved retreating and calling 911, but there is no law
that requires good judgment. The kid could have thought he was going to catch a burglar in the act--and he bet wrong.

If the Union is once severed, the line of separation will grow wider and wider, and the controversies which are now debated and settled in the halls of legislation will then be tried in fields of battle and determined by the sword.
Andrew Jackson

It will be interesting to see the toxicology report on Adams. Wht was his BAC? I also see he had been arrested in 2007 on a narcotic's charge. No mention of the disposition on that arrest. Was he perhaps high on something?

Just taking the story on face value, I'd say it was probably a justified shooting.

It will be interesting to see the toxicology report on Adams. Wht was his BAC? I also see he had been arrested in 2007 on a narcotic's charge. No mention of the disposition on that arrest. Was he perhaps high on something?

Just taking the story on face value, I'd say it was probably a justified shooting.

2007 was a long time ago, for a 24 year old. If he had continued in his old ways he'd likely have been in trouble since then.

If the Union is once severed, the line of separation will grow wider and wider, and the controversies which are now debated and settled in the halls of legislation will then be tried in fields of battle and determined by the sword.
Andrew Jackson